


What We Do Behind a Mask

by The Big Roman (Hammocker)



Series: A World of One Color [6]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Beating, Breakfast, Burglary, Canon-Typical Violence, Daddy Kink, Drugs, Explicit Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction, M/M, Masks, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-11
Updated: 2018-05-15
Packaged: 2019-03-16 16:03:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13639608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hammocker/pseuds/The%20Big%20Roman
Summary: Jason figured that the job Roman gave him was simple enough. Beat up a low-life thief. Easy.





	1. Chapter 1

If there was one thing that Jason couldn’t fault Roman on, it was his food. The next morning, Jason woke up to the smell of eggs and ham and toast, and, as he meandered out of Roman’s bedroom found exactly that, plus some other choice selections, already laid out on his side of the dining room table. Roman was already sitting there in his usual place, still as barefaced as he’d been the previous night. Almost every window around the dining room was conspicuously curtained, keeping the sun out. There was no food in front of him, and where a plate might have been was what looked to be an oversized checkbook instead.

“Morning,” Jason chirped at him.

Roman gave an ambiguous grunt, but didn’t look up at Jason.

Jason didn’t bother to question it. He was so hungry all of a sudden. His appetite hadn’t been as strong as it usually was the past few days, not even with Alfred’s Christmas cooking, but suddenly it had returned with a vengeance. So he sat down and loaded up his plate with scrambled eggs, ham slices and toast, with a tangerine or two on the side.

The second that he started eating, Roman’s attention was on him. He kept his eyes to the book at first, but it didn’t take long for them to wander. Jason half-suspected that Roman fed him as well as he did for his own pleasure, born out of some sick sense of caretaking. Not like Jason minded much. Roman could watch all day if it meant Jason always got to eat this well.

Of course, with Roman, there was never a free breakfast.

“Like I was telling you last night-” Roman started, loud enough to indicate that he wanted Jason’s full attention.

Jason, mouth still stuffed with a mixture of toast, eggs, and fruit, looked up at Roman with wide, attentive eyes.

“-I got a job for you.”

Jason hurriedly swallowed down the rest of his food before wiping his mouth with a stray napkin. “Ah, yeah, burglars, right?”

“Just one, by all accounts. Singled himself out for us.” Roman gave a snort before adding, “Polite of him.”

“What’d he take?”

“Heroin, mostly, and some odds and ends,” Roman answered, waving his hand dismissively. “Doesn’t matter, really. He could’ve stolen a pack of gum and I’d still have him hunted down.”

“Okay, one guy, stole some goods. Got something particular in mind?”

“Keep it simple.” Roman now stared pointedly in Jason’s eye. “Find out who he is, make an example of him.”

“An example? You want me to beat him up, or…?” Jason let himself trail off.

“You don’t need to kill anyone, Jason.” Roman said, shaking his head. “Just make it hurt. I want the fear of God put in anyone who so much as thinks of stealing from me.”

“Well, jeez, if you wanted that, you should be the one beating people up,” Jason said as he went to stand up.

“Where the hell are you going?” Roman snapped.

Jason shrugged and gestured towards the elevator. “To start?”

“Not like that you’re not.”

“Not like what?” Jason asked, even as he complied. “You have a particular outfit preference for beating the shit out of junkies?”

Roman didn’t budge, but made a clear gesture downwards. “Sit down, finish your damn eggs, and quit being a smartass.”

Well, Jason could make two out of those three happen at least. Under Roman’s watchful eye, he picked his fork up and resumed stuffing his face. 

For a while, Roman was quiet as he watched Jason from afar. That wasn’t unusual, but Jason knew better than to let his guard down around Roman. He’d gotten better and better at predicting whether Roman was really done with him or not. And, surely enough, Roman did speak again.

“Jason,” he said, just loud enough to grab Jason’s attention.

Jason didn’t stop eating as he looked up this time.

“Wear my mask when you go,” Roman ordered, before turning his gaze downward once again.

Jason froze and swallowed a half-chewed bit of toast, and winced as it went down painfully. Wear Roman’s mask? What? Why? He opened his mouth, questions on his mind, but nothing came out. He knew that Roman had meant for his command to be final, and the conversation was already over.

It took a minute before Jason started on his food again. Roman didn’t seem to be watching him anymore, but Jason sure had his eye on Roman.

*****

Once Roman finally let him leave the table, Jason spent most of the day tracking the leads he had. It was easy enough to start. Jason had asked around among Roman’s men, and been directed to the couple of guys who’d witnessed the thief getting away.

“Yeah, I shot at him, and he ran-” The guy led Jason over the path, retracing his steps “- just bolted, like a bat outta hell, and I chase him, you know, and I find this shit-”

He gestured up to a vent with its cover knocked off.

“And I shoot in there, but I don’t hit nothin’, I still hear this asshole crawling around like a creep, so I figure, hey, vents go to the roof, better send guys up there.”

“And you didn’t stay by the vent?” Jason interjected.

“Nope.” The goon scratched his neck, giving an anxious laugh. “He wasn’t going for the roof, turns out. He backs the hell up, jumps out the same way he came, and boom, runs back through our front door, and who’s gonna be looking there now, huh?”

Jason nodded along. Something told him that this guy and his compatriots were already off of Roman’s payroll.

“Did you see what he looked like?”

“Well, like I says, skinny little guy. Kinda haggard. Didn’t get a good look at him in the front, but he was wearin’ a jacket with a hood ‘n grey sweatpants. All the same color actually. Looked like some kinda jogger, ‘n ran like one too.”

Jason let out a puff of air through his nose. That could describe plenty of the ne'er do wells who inhabited the city.

“How much was taken exactly?”

“Enough heroin for a good month’s worth’a doses if he wanted to stretch it for himself. Some other little things, bit’a weed and powder, but nothing else that big.”

Scoring that much drug on Black Mask’s territory, though, that was something that might just get around. Even at street level, Roman wasn’t cheap. Of course, that assumed that this guy hadn’t gotten the hell out of Dodge right away. Jason just had to hope that he wasn’t too good at covering his trail.

“Not much but I can work with that,” Jason said, giving the goon a reassuring nod. “I’ll, uh, ask around, and with any luck, I can track him down by midnight. Thanks for the info.”

“Nah, nah, thank you, Hood,” the goon said, giving an anxious chuckle. “Big screw up last night, but y’might just save our tails if you turn this around.”

“Is that what the boss told you?”

“Yeah, actually. Was a real surprise. I seen guys get axed right away over less.” He shrugged, like that he’d already accepted his likely fate. “But hey, can’t beat the benefits, huh?”

“No, I guess you can’t.”

*****

Hunting down further clues was as simple as interrogating the nearby low-life populations. A boot to the cheek got information flowing better than any other method Jason knew, and it didn’t take long for Jason to hear about a skinny guy in grey running a little needle sharing ring in the area. From the sounds of it, he wore a mask like he was part of Black Mask’s crew, but Roman wouldn’t have tolerated his choice of clothes. Roman was picky about colors, preferring bold, rich color. Blacks, reds, whites, anything but grey. Something as bland as grey didn’t sell Roman’s brand in the way he liked

Roman especially wouldn’t like a competing vendor distributing his very own stock within his territory, so Jason had to get this done quickly. All signs pointed to the guy being based in a crumbling parking garage only a few miles away from where the break-in had happened.

Figuring that Roman didn’t care what Jason wore pre-beating, he hadn’t bothered with the mask so far. As the sun disappeared below the horizon, though, Jason made his way over Gotham’s rooftops to his nearby safehouse.

Jason hopped up the rickety fire escape of a derelict apartment building, making his way up and through his window. He didn’t hang around his room as much as he used to, not with how comfortable he’d gotten at Roman’s place, but it was always good to have a place to crash and store things. Jason had absolutely not wanted to keep the mask in Wayne Manor any longer than necessary.

Jason crossed the room over towards the bed and the small wardrobe next to it. He slid open the topmost drawer, and there was the mask, grin-sneering up at him among a few hastily folded shirts.

With some apprehension, Jason picked up the mask and pulled out its cloth stuffing once more. He’d looked at the mask before, on Roman and by itself, but he’d never thought of it in the context of wearing it himself. It was like looking at a whole new object then. The zipper in front was closed, and would need to be pulled open. The straps in the front looked to control some kind of tightening mechanism, but Jason supposed that he’d only figure those out once the mask was on his head. As he spun the mask in his hands, Jason came across a second zip on the back of it, probably also for tightening the fit.

It was simple enough, he supposed, simpler than it looked. With caution and reverence, Jason unzipped the mask in both the back and front.

Jason took in a deep breath and slipped the mask over his head. It didn’t prickle or itch as it went down; it was pure softness. It reminded him of his hood, but with a little more friction on the inside. The good kind of friction, the kind that would keep his skin from irritating him while the mask was on.

The second thing he noticed was his field of view. Sure enough, his peripheral vision was virtually non-existent, and everything was darker, like he was wearing sunglasses. It would have been great if Jason was going out in the day, but he could work with it.

Jason zipped up in the back first thing, feeling the leather pull snug up against his scalp. He did the same in the front, and found his jaw pushed into place.

“I got a business to run, kid,” Jason snarled in his best Roman impression.

Well, he could still talk, but there wasn’t much wiggle room. Roman must have had a lot of practice with this thing.

He felt a little odd not wearing the mask with a suit. Roman hadn’t specified an outfit, but he suddenly felt the urge to mimic his boss even further. Roman was the kind of guy to dress Jason up for the occasion of breaking a man’s legs. Might as well go all the way. Though, it was probably best to adjust the mask first.

Jason pulled at the straps, tightening the fit around his head until it was firm, but not too restrictive. He reached up to touch the mask, stroking the leather and metal where Roman had never allowed him to before. It felt odd on him. Odd, but comfortable. Jason could almost imagine Roman there, helping him put it on properly. He wondered what Roman would say or do, seeing Jason like this.

It felt good, Jason could say that much. Nicer feel overall than his own mask, though, not quite his style. But then, neither was the deep black shirt he decided to wear over his normal body armor. He was already wearing a different mask, so he figured he should hide his usual alias as much as possible. No hood, no biker jacket, no chest bat, no Red Hood.

From there, he figured he might need a change of pants too. He dug through the drawers and every semi-folded pair of combat pants he could find. Most of them were his trademark blue-gray, and barely any were clean, but after a bit of digging, he found the deep gray pair he was looking for. Perfect.

Getting his pants and boots off and on again took some extra time, but he had that much. He decided to only take one of his guns, and one of his thigh holsters by extension. He was just going after a druggie after all. He might not even need that gun.

As Jason gave his holster a last tug, he took a moment to look down at himself. He almost wished he had a mirror. What would Roman have said? He didn’t quite look like himself, he knew that much. He kind of liked that.

The thought gave him a shudder, but Jason had a job to do. He pushed it to the back of his mind and headed back out the window.

*****

The garage was about a half an hour away from the burgled warehouse. Far enough of a radius that the guy wouldn’t be easy to track, but not nearly far enough. Something told Jason that the guy had aspirations to steal again. Bad move all around.

As he stepped inside, Jason found himself surrounded by crumbling concrete, decaying cars, and graffiti as far as the eye could see. No sign of anyone so far. It was possible that he’d have to wait and stakeout the area, but Jason was fine with that. That would only make it easier to make an intimidating first impression. He’d put some thought into his entrance, what he might say or do. If the guy ran, Jason chased him down like the rat he was. If not, well, they were going to have quite the conversation.

Making his way up to the second level, though, Jason started to hear murmurs echoing through the garage. He moved slowly, careful to make his own steps light, and tracked the sound over to the far north corner of the garage.

As he peered around a corner, Jason found a group of junkies sitting around among the debris. In the middle of them, sure enough, the man in grey, wearing a mask like he belonged to Roman’s crew. Jason wasn’t sure what part of his outfit would offend Roman more, the color scheme or the wearing a knock-off False Facer mask. Among them were used needles, and a lot of them. Maybe this guy’s drug thievery went back even further.

Jason had had an image of swooping down from above and catching the guy off guard, like a certain Bat might have. Now, though, that didn’t seem as feasible.

So Jason came up with a better plan. He skulked out from his hiding spot, stood up straight, and approached them as calm as could be.

It took a moment for them to notice him, and some were faster than others. Slowly but surely, though, each of them sat up and stared at him. An uncertain whimper of “The Black Mask?” passed between them, but they stayed where they were, huddled like frightened sheep.

Jason passed a glance over them. He pointed with two fingers to his thief.

“You and I have something to talk about. If your friends know what’s good for them, they’ll scram.”

They didn’t need to be told twice. As quickly as he’d said it, the group had dispatched like they’d never been there at all. Jason was left standing there with just his grey man. Perfect.

He took a few more steps towards the man, drawing his shoulders up while keeping his posture wide. All the while, the grey man only seemed to shrink before him.

“First thing’s first,” Jason growled. “Get rid of the mask.”

The guy’s hand lifted up to gesture towards Jason’s face. “You- but you-”

“I won’t be taking my mask off. I earned this.” Jason scoffed, like the very idea of removing it disgusted him. “But you, well, you’ve never earned a thing in your life, have you?”

The man stood there, silent and cowering below him. It took a moment, but soon enough, he reached up and pulled his mask up away from his face.

His face matched his posture, eyes sunken in with dark, sickly pigment all around them. He was pale, hair thin and almost bleached. As his lips parted between breaths, Jason caught a glimpse of jagged teeth. He couldn’t have been much older than 30 either. Yeah, he was an addict alright.

“Name?”

“Crank,” he stuttered, almost stating it like a question.

Jason gave a sniff of laughter. Crank. Must have been in a gang at some point.

“Crank, huh? You sure about that?”

Crank opened his mouth to reply, and, just like that, Jason punched him in the gut. His breath caught in his throat and he stumbled back, only barely keeping balanced. Hunched over and gripping his belly, he started backing off from Jason, but Jason followed easily.

“Didn’t anyone ever teach you that actions have consequences?” he asked as casually as he could.

For a moment, Jason felt the persona falter. It struck him how- violent he was being. Even for him. He didn’t usually beat up junkies who couldn’t even defend themselves. But he was doing this for Roman and he had to keep going.

“I just- I just needed a fix,” Crank whimpered, shaking his head. “I didn’t know-”

“Right!” Jason broke in. “You _didn’t_ know.” 

In an effortless motion, Jason closed the gap between them before kneeing Crank where he was already hurting. He yelped this time, and crumpled to the ground. It was almost too easy, beating on this pathetic creature.

Jason bent over just slightly to look straight down at him. “You didn’t know how much it was gonna hurt when you took what wasn’t yours.”

All Crank could do was cover his head now, staring up at Jason with wide eyes. His pure fright sent a strange thrill through Jason.

“Well, guess what?” Jason asked, kneeling down to push his mask close to Crank’s face. “It’s only going to get worse.”

Jason lunged forward and grabbed Crank’s nearest arm. Right away, Crank started twisting, trying to pull away, but Jason held fast, and hauled him upward. It was barely a fight. Crank was so skinny he was like a feather, and Jason easily maneuvered around to twist Crank’s arm tightly behind his back.

From his position, Crank’s fight to get away only put him in more pain, and the pain, in turn, made him fight harder. His cries morphed into screams, but he couldn’t break Jason’s hold on him. All Jason had to do was keep a firm grip, and apply more pressure.

So that’s exactly what he did, while Crank howled and hollered and begged. Beneath the mask, Jason found himself smiling. Jason’s smile only grew wider when he heard the telltale _snap_.

Jason finally let go, letting Crank tumble to the floor. He put his untouched arm out to catch himself, and howled as his other swung awkwardly at his side. Still, he got up and made a valiant effort to run away. Jason didn’t stop him this time, and Roman’s goons hadn’t been kidding: he was pretty fast. It didn’t take more than a minute for him to cross the floor towards the ramp down. Of course, Jason couldn’t let him get too far, but it was fun to watch.

Jason stalked over to the overlook above the ramp. There was Crank, running for his life. Cute. Swiveling his head to look around, Jason spotted a long, metal stick on the ground. Maybe part of a jack at one point. He picked it up and balanced its weight in his hands. Light enough and thin. Perfect. He took a running jump onto the ramp, landed effortlessly, and broke into a sprint after his prey.

Crank put up a valiant effort. For at least a minute, he kept a good ten feet between them, but it didn’t take long to wear him out. His pace rapidly fell apart, and Jason was hot on his heels. Brandishing the jack stick, Jason counted the seconds. And when he found the right moment, he swung hard.

The stick hit Crank square in his femur, and he fell with one last agonizing scream. Jason laughed breathily. He strutted over to Crank and once again looked down at him.

“So, have you learned anything today, Crank?”

Crank didn’t reply. His mouth hung open and he shakily turned his head towards Jason.

“Please…” he breathed, reaching out to grip Jason’s leg, just below the knee.

Jason recoiled in disgust. He’d made it clear that Crank had wronged Black Mask and he still tried to _touch_ Jason? He really hadn’t learned a damn thing.

Despite his pleading, Jason still didn’t think he looked hurt enough. Sure, his arm was still at that strange angle, and his mouth was bleeding a bit, but Roman wanted an _example_. Jason was happy to oblige.

“Well, in that case, here’s the moral of the story.”

Jason lifted the jack stick up again before bringing it down hard. It swished through the air and hit Crank’s chest with a solid _whap_.

“Don’t!”

 _Whap_.

“Fuck!”

 _Whap_.

“With the Black Mask!”

Jason lifted the jack to strike again. Adrenaline was pumping through him and he was shivering with anticipation. How could it feel so good, doing this for Roman? It was so- easy. He tipped his head down to look at his handiwork.

And then Jason hesitated. Below him, Crank had started sobbing, tears streaming down his eyes. Blood had pooled around his mouth and nose as he coughed. Jason must have broken some ribs if the painful seizes as he tried to breathe were any indication. He was just so- pathetic. Too familiar.

It wasn’t just some junkie on the floor then. All Jason could see was a kid’s broken body, bloodied and bruised from sheer abuse. Twitching as it held onto life. It was Jason on the floor now, dying, alone, pitiful. Sobbing out an apology to his mentor. 

Jason knew that it was just his mind fooling him, but he couldn’t not see it. Couldn’t help but want to run away from it. It hurt, and, for once, Jason couldn’t stand that pain.

The jack slipped out of his hand, and clattered onto the floor. The racket startled him back to reality, but the damage was done. Jason felt himself start to shiver as the adrenaline kept its grip on him and was on the verge of panic.

Jason took a step back, making his best effort to keep breathing. He tore his eyes off of Crank to turn around, angling himself towards the exit and taking shaky steps towards it. It felt like an eternity before he saw the sidewalk again, and even longer before he stepped out into the night.

He’d had enough for the night. Jason didn’t want anything more than to see Roman then. He’d done his job anyway. It was time to go home.

As he left, though, Jason couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched.


	2. Chapter 2

Jason didn’t bother to change or take his mask off before heading right for Roman’s suite. There might have been blood or grime on him, but he didn’t care. If Roman didn’t like it, he’d shower, but he needed to be near Roman. He needed something to ground him. Needed to stop thinking.

He’d been over it. He _was_ over it. What happened? He’d hurt people before, killed people. How was this any different? Jason couldn’t find a good answer. He wasn’t even sure if he wanted an answer.

As he stepped inside, Jason was silent. He glanced around for signs of Roman, but found none, like he was used to. On a hunch, Jason headed straight for the bedroom, and pushed his way in. He worried that Roman might already be in bed. Jason might have just crawled into bed next to him without hesitating, dirty clothes and boots and all.

Fortunately, Roman wasn’t. Instead he was sitting in his usual place at the front of the room. Waiting? Jason didn’t know if he dared to call it that.

As he heard the door creak open, Roman looked up from the book in his hands. His face might not have been as capable of expressing as some, but Jason saw a change as he took in the sight in front of him.

Roman put the book down, and stood up, stepping up towards Jason. He stared at Jason for a while, and Jason couldn’t seem to get a read on Roman. Maybe he was tired and his mind wasn’t processing as fast. Although, he didn’t really care what Roman was thinking at that moment. All that mattered was that he was nearby again. Jason was safe, safe as he’d ever be. He didn’t have to think about anything that had happened.

“Look at you,” Roman breathed at least. “You’re a mess.”

Roman reached up to touch the mask, and ran two gloved fingers over it. When he pulled them back, a splotch of blood was plain on the tips. Jason shuddered, and Roman spoke again.

“How was it?”

Jason didn’t answer right away. Or he couldn’t. He was somewhere between “can’t” and “won’t”. All he wanted to do was lay down and have Roman help him forget. He had a feeling it wouldn’t be quite that easy, though.

“It was easy,” Jason said, flat and cold. “I- sent your message.”

Roman must have decided that something was wrong then. His eyes focused in on Jason’s, and even seemed to narrow.

“Of course it was easy. You wore my mask.”

“I _always_ wear a mask,” Jason pointed out.

“You always wear _your_ mask,” Roman clarified. “That hood is a second skin for you. Only difference between Jason Todd and Red Hood is a name and a reputation.”

Jason wanted to open his mouth and argue, just like he always did, but no words came to him.

“But with my mask? You were _me_. Everyone could see it, and you felt it.” Roman reached up once again, this time to cup Jason’s face. “The wearer reflects the mask. The mask reflects the wearer.”

Jason leaned into the touch, whining at the sense of being so close and yet so far. The leather and metal between them was too much, even being less than an inch thick. He wanted to get closer, no barriers. He’d _kill_ for Roman to get all his clothes off for once. And Roman was still talking.

“Still a lot of me in this, Jason, but I see you. Anyone who knows you or me could.” His hands slipped down, smudging Jason’s shirt with blood. “That’s not a lot of people, is it?”

Jason shuddered and suddenly understood why Roman had given the mask to him in the first place. Before he could respond, though, Roman backed off and gave a casual wave of his hand.

“Get everything off. Except the mask.”

The order was welcome, even if Jason would have rather taken the mask off too.

Jason hastily stripped off his layers, only giving cursory concern to where he put his armor or his boots or anything really. Roman didn’t correct him or even say anything. All he did was watch Jason through those impossibly sharp eyes, like Jason was a cornered piece of prey. He was definitely as desperate.

He hesitated to move for the bed, as that hadn’t been part of Roman’s orders. Smart move, seeing as Roman approached him again, putting his hands over Jason’s biceps and just about shoving him back towards the bed. Jason went easily when he was pushed back on it, and he welcomed the feeling of getting off of his feet.

Roman wasted no time in getting his hands on Jason. He went at a pace that blended dignified patience and _want_ , the kind of thing that Roman excelled at. His touch roamed from Jason’s belly up to the start of his ribcage, then over his chest, his nipples, his collar. It never stayed in place for too long, and the touches were near feather light. Somehow, that made them all the more tantalizing, even as flecks of blood smeared over his skin.

Finally, one of Roman’s hands came to rest over the cheek of Jason’s mask, and he leaned down to look Jason right in the eye.

“Think I like it more on you,” Roman rasped. “You wear it so well.”

Jason was briefly glad for the mask, seeing as his face flushed to an almost uncomfortable degree. It wasn’t like him to get flustered so easily, he knew, but Jason needed this. He needed more.

“Daddy,” Jason whined. “Don’t tease. I want- I want…” 

Jason wasn’t entirely sure what he wanted from Roman, but he needed to let Roman know anyway. 

“Please,” he finally settled on. “Don’t hold back.”

Roman paused a moment, still looking through the mask’s eye openings and, presumably, into Jason’s mind and soul.

“Of course, baby,” he said after a moment. “I take care of what’s mine.”

Jason shuddered and felt his cock twitch. He’d never thought of himself as someone who would or even could get off on the idea of belonging to someone, or even belonging at all. And yet, not having to worry and letting Roman make most of the real decisions had made Jason’s life as stress-free as it had ever been. Happy even. Maybe.

Roman ducked out of Jason’s view, and Jason could barely even be bothered to track his movement. He gave the slightest tilt of his head to get a glimpse at Roman grabbing lube, but it was more out of instinct than curiosity. He didn’t care too much about what Roman did, as long as he was close.

As Roman came back into his sightlines, he peeled off his gloves and took his place, coaxing Jason’s legs apart and kneeling between them.

Jason shuddered at the feeling, his mind wandering. Roman had one hand just below Jason's knee, just like- before. His stomach churned at the feel of it.

But Jason didn't have time to dwell. Roman had made himself busy, squeezing lube into his palm and spreading it over his fingers. Jason was caught off guard as Roman pushed his right leg back, and Jason hissed at the warm, wet sensation. Jason’s attention was stolen back,to and he watched as closely as he could through his darkened vision as Roman pressed two digits to his entrance. His breath caught in his throat and Jason had to force a slow inhale so he might relax enough to make Roman’s job easier.

With or without help, Roman knew him too well to take long before finding that spot. No more than five seconds in, and Roman was curling his fingers against it.

“ _A-ahn_!” Jason cried out, hips bucking.

Roman held Jason in place, all the while he kept up his calculated assault on Jason’s senses. He knew what he was doing from experience, and broke Jason down almost as soon as he’d started.

“Roman- Roman please,” Jason pleaded. “Fuck me, please, don’t make me wait.”

As soon as he spoke, Roman retracted his fingers and adjusted his position so that they were parallel.

“Of course, my boy,” he purred. “You’ve done me a favor, after all.”

He leaned down to nudge his face against the mask. It was- something like a kiss. Maybe. It figured that Roman would only even think of kissing Jason if there was a symbol of himself between them. Still, he’d take the intimacy where he could get it.

Jason was so caught up in staring into Roman’s intense, red eyes that the feeling of Roman lining himself up came as a surprise. He could only manage a hiss before Roman had pressed all the way in.

He could pick out the expression Roman wanted to make so close up. His eyes shifted off to the side, his jaw opening just a bit to release a sigh of satisfaction. Jason could imagine his eyelids fluttering as the subtlest of smiles crossed his face. Those strong, handsome features that, even now, shone through.

He didn’t have much time to ponder it, though, as Roman tilted himself upward to start thrusting. Jason cried out and grabbed at Roman’s shoulders, his legs spreading wider for him. It was getting too hot under the mask. He wanted to see Roman, see him properly, without the damn sunglass lenses, but he couldn’t find it in himself to undo the zippers and everything. It felt too good to do anything else.

As he thought, though, Roman’s movements stilled and Jason felt him reach around Jason’s head to pull the back zipper loose. Then he went for the front, and already Jason felt clean air fill his lungs. Roman then pushed the mask up and put it aside, leaning in to press their faces together. Jason opened his mouth, not just for air, but to return the semblance of a kiss, nothing between them anymore.

It was more than fresh air and Roman’s presence. Jason felt he’d shed more than just leather and buckles, but something that should have been left in that parking garage, before everything went wrong.

They broke away, and with that, Roman started back up in force, and Jason arched his back with another caterwaul. They were both close, Jason could feel it. He wanted it, so bad. After what he’d dealt with that night, he needed something to rid his unease.

He didn’t have to wait more than half a minute. Roman let out his tell tale grunt as his thrusts grew uneven and hurried. Jason himself felt his balls draw up and sheer pleasure flowing up through his belly. Not a second later, he felt cum splatter onto his belly. Then, he felt a secondary warmth inside of him, another small burst of pleasure, and he knew it was over.

Jason couldn’t help but smile, basking in how good he felt in that moment. Despite everything that had happened, Roman had made him feel good. That should have scared him even more than a bloodied junkie in a parking lot, but still he smiled like an idiot.

Roman slipped out with no fanfare before bringing his hands up to cup Jason’s face once more. This time, though, it was so much more gratifying. Feeling Roman’s skin on his own was almost too much, too intimate. Yet still, Jason melted into the touch, already blissed out, and in need of that contact.

“There’s my beautiful boy,” Roman murmured.

Jason wasn’t sure if Roman was talking about his smile, or just seeing him in general. He didn’t care. It felt good, having Roman’s affection, if only briefly.

As he came down from the high, though, he couldn’t hold onto it.

Roman went about his business, taking out some wet wipes and cleaning both of them up. Jason shuddered at the feeling of it, at Roman’s indirect touch that left him chilled, but only just so.

When that was done, he turned to the forgotten mask, laying at the side of the bed.

“Do you- want to keep that?” Jason asked, following Roman’s eyes.

“No,” Roman said, moving to place it on Jason’s bedside table. “No, it’s yours now. I have others if I need them.”

Jason made a grunt of acknowledgement, doing what he could to relax against the bed. His mind was already wandering back to that parking garage. Terrifying those addicts and...

“I don’t want to do that again,” Jason declared suddenly, like a confession.

Roman didn’t say anything at first. Instead, he laid down on his side next to Jason, and prompted him into a loose embrace. Jason abided without complaint, accepting the comfort of Roman’s arms around him.

“I don’t blame you,” Roman finally said, thoughtfully. “Think I like you better when you’re you anyway.”

Jason blinked. Earlier, Roman had told him that he wore the mask well, better than Roman even, and now he liked Jason better without it? It wasn’t necessarily contradictory, but it was odd for Roman. For him to admit to liking Jason. It was obvious in his actions that he did, but he seldom said as much.

“I like you better when you’re you too,” Jason said.

Roman chuffed, his eyes giving a skeptical side swipe. “Sure you do.”

That seemed to be the end of the conversation as far as Roman was concerned. Jason wanted to say something more. He still couldn’t get that picture of himself out of his head. The kid on the floor. The monster looming over him. The line between them that kept getting smudged.

He wanted to tell Roman. Spill his guts and tell him everything, absolutely everything that had pushed him to this point. Yet something in him refused, like that was a step too far yet.

So instead, Jason settled for pressing his face against Roman’s chest, curling up in his arms up against his torso. Being there in Roman’s arms was enough to stave off his anxiety for the time being. Even if what they had wasn’t even affection, it was close enough that Jason felt safe there.


End file.
